Department for Transport

Driving Licences: Health

Lord Berkeley: To ask His Majesty's Government what is the procedure for a medical professional to contact the DVLA if an individual is considered unfit to drive, following a medical diagnosis.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: All drivers are legally responsible for notifying the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) of any medical condition that may affect their ability to drive safely. The DVLA recognises that there may be occasions where a licence holder fails to declare a medical condition because they fear losing their licence or because they lack insight into their ability to drive safely. In these situations, the DVLA investigates notifications from third parties, including concerned relatives, neighbours, police and healthcare professionals. The General Medical Council and the General Optical Council provide guidance to healthcare professionals around notifying the DVLA of a patient’s medical condition. Medical professionals must make every reasonable effort to persuade patients to inform the DVLA themselves but if they are aware their patient has failed to do so healthcare professionals can notify the DVLA of a patient’s medical condition in confidence. The DVLA provides online guidance in its ‘Assessing Fitness to Drive – a guide for medical professionals’ document. This includes a notification form for healthcare professionals to complete and provides a dedicated contact point which allows them to discuss concerns directly with a DVLA doctor. The DVLA treat such notifications as a high priority.

Electric Vehicles: Charging Points

Baroness Grey-Thompson: To ask His Majesty's Government, further to their announcement on 21 February regardingnew electric vehicle charging points to be installed across England, how many will be accessible for wheelchair users.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: The Local EV Infrastructure Fund provides Local Authorities with funding to deliver a public chargepoint network that best suits the needs of the local area. Through the Local EV Infrastructure Support Body, the Government provides Local Authorities with expert advice to develop these projects, including guidance on accessibility. The Government will continue to monitor whether further intervention is needed on accessibility over time.

Stonehenge: Land Use

Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb: To ask His Majesty's Government when the National Trust applied for, and when National Highways agreed to provide, £3 million from the environment and wellbeing designated funds to support a grassland reversion project in the Stonehenge landscape; what the terms of the grant are; and whether the grant has already been distributedin its entirety.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: The application to National Highways Designated Funds Investment Decision Committee regarding a grassland reversion project in the Stonehenge landscape was submitted and approved by the Committee on 6 June 2020. The grant agreement was signed by both parties on the 3 February 2021. National Trust will effect change in the management of the relevant project land and will carry out the grassland reversion works to deliver at least:88 biodiversity units calculated in accordance with the relevant methodology in the Natural England Biodiversity Metric 2.0270 heritage improvement points159ha of moderate condition lowland calcareous grassland11ha of good condition lowland calcareous grassland The grant has not been fully paid. The payment schedule of the grant extends from March 2021 to March 2025.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities

Party Wall etc Act 1996

Baroness Hodgson of Abinger: To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any plans toreform the Party Wall etc. Act 1996.

Baroness Scott of Bybrook: There are no plans, at present, to undertake a review of the Party Wall Act.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Israel: Palestinians

The Lord Bishop of Southwark: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the decision by the government of Israel to prohibit Palestinians under the age of 22 from entering Israel to participate in organised peace-building activities and the impact that this will have on UK-funded cross-community peace building work in the region.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: We continue to call upon the Government of Israel to fully respect the fundamental rights and freedoms of Palestinians and civil society organisations and to allow them to freely operate in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs). Israel must abide by its obligations under international humanitarian law. The Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, Lord Ahmad, has raised human rights concerns in several recent engagements with the Israeli Ambassador, including a call on 16 February. The UK is committed to making progress towards a negotiated two-state solution. In support of this, we continue to fund peacebuilding projects focused on Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. The UK remains committed to a two-state solution, as I [Lord Ahmad] made clear in meetings with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh and Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki, during my visit to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories on 10-13 January.

Department of Health and Social Care

NHS England: Data Protection

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask His Majesty's Government why the Independent Group Advising on the Release of Data only received draft guidance on NHS England’s protection of patient data on 18 January for comment by 20 January.

Lord Markham: The Independent Group Advising on the Release of Data (IGARD) were asked to provide feedback on the latest draft of the guidance on a quick turnaround, as the transfer of NHS Digital’s functions to NHS England was conducted at pace because we are keen to see the benefits of creating a single statutory body responsible for data and digital technology for the National Health Service delivered quickly. This was not intended to be a hard deadline for receiving comments, or the end of the process, as the guidance has not been finalised. We have been reviewing the feedback from IGARD and other stakeholders. The Department would welcome any further feedback that those who were members of IGARD, and others, wish to provide, as we finalise the guidance and then keep it under review. My officials have discussed the concerns raised by IGARD with NHS England officials.

Immunosuppression: Coronavirus

Baroness Altmann: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that immunocompromised people for whom vaccination is not suitable are protected against COVID-19.

Lord Markham: Those who are at higher risk of serious outcomes from COVID-19, including the immunosuppressed and/or immunocompromised, remain a priority for the Government and as such are offered enhanced protections and interventions such as treatments, vaccines, and public health advice. The Government recently updated the online-only COVID-19: guidance for people whose immune system means they are at higher risk on 30 January 2023. In rare cases where people may have a medical contraindication to currently available COVID-19 vaccines, individuals are able to access services such as a referral to an allergist or other appropriate specialist, to consider administration of the implicated mRNA vaccine under medical supervision in a suitable environment. When mRNA vaccines are not considered clinically suitable, the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine Nuvaxovid, a protein subunit vaccine, may be used as an alternative for people who are contraindicated against and cannot have any alternative clinically suitable United Kingdom-approved COVID-19 vaccine. The Government continues to be guided by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation on the COVID-19 vaccination programme. Immunosuppressed individuals are also a priority cohort for research into therapeutic and prophylaxis treatments such as monoclonal antibody therapies, novel antivirals, and repurposed compounds. The Government has made available a range of new treatment options within the community for National Health Service patients at greater risk from COVID-19. These treatments are licensed for use in non-hospitalised patients to reduce the risk of hospitalisation and death. There are two ways for clinically eligible patients to access these new treatments. Those in the highest risk group from COVID-19 with a positive COVID-19 test result can access the treatments directly, following advice from a clinician at a COVID Medicines Delivery Unit. In addition, oral antiviral treatments are available through the national study, PANORAMIC, run by the University of Oxford. This study is open to clinically eligible individuals living anywhere in the UK. Further details about eligibility can be found on the PANORAMIC website in an online-only format.